St. Patrick's Day Activities for Toddlers and Preschoolers
Is there anything that sparks joy like sunshine and rainbows? I think NOT. March is the PERFECT month for all things rainbow and bright and St. Patrick’s Day! :) Rainbows, leprechauns, gold coins, lucky clovers…just SO many cute, fun things to play and learn with.
So, here are some of my favorite activities to do with toddlers and preschoolers for this bright holiday! Scroll down to check out these quick, fun ways to play and learn this March!
1. St. Patrick’s Day “Play and Learn” Activities
The activities where kiddos can learn new things while they just feel like they’re playing are my absolute FAVORITE kind. :) Little learners definitely learn so much through play, so these fun activities are intended to feel like play, but be practicing important skills too.
Inside these busy books and busy boxes, your kiddos will find activities for practicing matching pictures, tracing, sorting by color, identifying letters and numbers, counting, naming shapes, and even coloring and covering for some fine motor practice! My little guy has so much fun with these, so we pull a new one out for each season and holiday. :)
READING READING READING!! Such a simple, happy time to snuggle up together and read a good book. Toddlers and preschoolers LOVE that one on one time with you. :) I find that the more I read for my own enjoyment AND read to my little one, the more he sees that behavior modeled and wants to do it himself. So, here are some of my all-time FAVORITE St. Patrick’s Day books for toddlers and preschoolers and for kindergarten and first grade learners.
Sensory bins are another super fun way to get your kiddos learning and playing at the same time too! I love pulling out a container of dry beans or pom-poms and adding in some buttons, mini erasers, or even just different-colored beans! My little guy loves to just dig his hands in there and play.
You can create sensory bins by tossing your favorite filler (like dry beans, rice, oats, pasta, pom-poms, vase-fillers, etc.) into a container and then adding some fun activity cards or learning component to it. My toddler just turned 3 and we usually use dry pinto beans (with lots of mini erasers and pom poms) to practice matching pictures, letters, or numbers. These St. Patrick’s Day centers and activities are perfect to throw into a St. Pat’s sensory bin for your toddler or preschooler this year! :) And HERE is a FREE St. Patrick’s Day sensory bin activity too!
4. St. Patrick’s Day Hands-On Activities
Something else we do together is activities that require lots of moving and messing around with manipulatives. We call this “hands on”…which basically means any kind of activity that has your little ones using their hands, bodies, and brains all together to complete an activity. As kids get older, activities tend to get less “hands-on” and more focused on paper/pencil. And, while there are big benefits to paper/pencil activities, younger kids need to learn through playing and using their bodies to practice and internalize new skills too! SO, hands-on centers give us a fun way to play and learn WHILE using our bodies. We do a lot of sorting, matching, running back and forth from one spot to another, playing games, and singing songs to learn the early literacy and math skills that my kiddo needs to learn. These FREE St. Patrick's Day themed activities are perfect for toddlers and young preschoolers this spring. Just CLICK HERE to sign up to get the password sent to your inbox!
5. St. Patrick's Day Printables
Practicing early literacy and early math skills is another activity that I feel you just can’t get enough of! Your little ones will benefit so much from being exposed to letters and numbers as early (and often) as possible. Pointing out and naming letters and numbers as you go through your day is a great way to build foundational literacy and math skills. One way we’ve been learning letters, numbers, and other essential “little one skills” is through these St. Patrick’s Day worksheets and printables! They’re packed with activities to practice fine motor skills through coloring, tracing, and drawing, as well as activities to practice letters, numbers, sorting, identifying, tracing, sizes, letter sounds, shapes, colors, counting…the list goes ON. These worksheets are PERFECT to stick in a binder and use to keep your little one entertained and learning for short spurts of time.
Making crafts together is such a happy way to play and learn together too! I love letting my little one paint or get out the glue to make something together. So, I pulled together some cute St. Patrick’s Day crafts on THIS PINTEREST BOARD and linked to a couple free craft projects below too. Check out whichever are best for you and your kiddos!
St. Patrick's Day Leprechaun Craft
7. St. Patrick’s Day FREEBIES
And last, but DEFINITELY not least, FREE ACTIVITIES!! Check out a few Valentine’s Day activities that are totally FREE and great for your little ones. Click any title below to hop right to the resource!
St. Patrick’s Day Literacy and Math for Littles (Just hop on the email list HERE to get the password!)
St. Patrick’s Day Write the Room
Lucky Charms Counting Sensory Bin
St. Patrick's Day Word Puzzles
I hope these St. Patrick’s ideas and activities will help you and your little learners enjoy this happy time of year while playing and learning together! If you want ALL activities mentioned above for your little ones, CLICK HERE to grab the St. Patrick’s Day Activities Bundle! And feel free to drop a comment below or email me if you have questions or if I can help with anything. So happy to do that!
Cheering you on!
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